The start of my first year with Swift.

Oh yeah, I better get one of those medical urine bottles. I start this morning with my mentor. We are on our way to SLC from Seattle. Out the door to meet him now, I will check in later.

 

@SavageMalloy hey man good luck, keep us updated. are you with Swift?

 

Here's one thing I can comment on with some knowledge, lol. Cigarette butts. First, quitting at CDL school is NOT possible, lol. Second, laziness plays a big part in why the ground gets so littered, but it's kind of a snowball thing. When you're outside for 5 minutes or so, having your smoke, and you see that the ground is a near solid layer of cigarette butts, what difference does it make when you flick yours instead of placing it in a receptacle? This is really as much a statement of the terminal/company as it is of drivers. You can pick up cigarette butts. If they cared, they'd clean it up, and post some signs to not make a mess or something of that nature. It's about the same as their facility maintenance. Dirty grounds, broken washer/dryers, nasty shower/bathrooms. That just seems to be Swift...

The urine stuff is disgusting. The combination of modern ease of anonymity with a truck that will have you out of the state by the end of the day allows people to do some disgusting stuff with little to no repercussions. People just don't care anymore.

 

Sheriff, I hate to see you go. I was happy to hear about life as a new trucker. I am getting ready to make that leap. Nothing has panned out for me during the last six months of unemployment. Hundreds of application, hundreds of rejections, and a 60k debt for a piece of paper that gets me branded as overqualified. I hope that I can tough out the 1 year to get to the gravy train of trucking - Tanker - Oil & Water. I want to run hard for a year and use that to move into a better position. I know there will be crap but hope I can be as positive as you have been. Good Luck to you. Your posts will be missed!

 

I just got into following your story sheriff, I'm real sorry to hear about this. You're like the main character of a good book now, I wanna see the happy ending, lol. If you haven't lost all your desire to drive, put some apps in at other companies. I don't know what brought you into Swift, but you picked a god awful company, they're not all quite this bad.

Good luck to you either way sheriff, thanks for the read.

 

Sheriff1/6, I just wanted to thank you for this thread. I have recently spoken with a Swift recruiter and have applied. Reading your accounts of life on the Road as a Swift driver has been extremely helpful to one like me by learning what many of the hardships are that come with the job, especially in the first year. Have you dissuaded me? Not at all. I am basically in an almost perfect situation for this job. I am divorced and not planning to remarry. I have no close family. I don't really have a home, as I don't own or rent at present. The only debt I have is one credit card with far less than a maximum carried balance. I love to drive, and I love to travel, and have a clean driving record. My only issue is my hearing, as I have some hearing loss, but I have hearing aids on order that will arrive Aug 5th. I might even hear well enough to pass the DOT physical now, but i am afraid to take it until I get the hearing aids. Anybody, please feel free to offer any experiences with this problem you may have encountered with drivers with hearing loss. I would be very appreciative.

As for your experiences with Walmart, I worked for them for almost 10 years in five stores in Texas and Colorado, leaving them in 2011. I was in management, and actually helped unload many of those trucks driven by Swift drivers. I know exactly what the drivers experience at store receiving. Fortunately for drivers like yourself, our receiving dept was recognized by award as being the best in district as voted by drivers more than once. After that job, I can't help but feel that a life on the road driving a truck for me would be an improvement, even with the headaches you have documented. Managing a group of very poorly paid, stressed out associates is no fun, and having a terror for a store manager as I had, the job is practically unbearable. Hopefully we will meet sometime in the future.

 

So that was the last chapter of a pretty good read ,kinda saw it comming. Good that you turned in the truck ,so it didn't work out, so give it six months or so that hi-way siren may call you back,pretty much how this industry is for some folks. Too many trucks not enough loads,its inevitable your gonna sit and wait for a load a bit. For quite a few truckers it's the life style just living on the road thats what its about and making a few coins in the process, at 63 I'm going back one more time. So sorry to see you go. Catch you on the flip side.

 

Yes, as fifthwheel said, we could see it coming. People of integrity and self worth are not going to survive with companies that don't display respect for their employees. It raises the perennial question - why don't these stupid companies never embrace the universal truth that having a constant turnover is not a cheap way of doing business.

I followed your driving with a lot of interest (had my Michelin road Atlas out) because I bought a bike in Maine in 2010 and rode across the States, coming into Idaho on a fabulous ride over the Teton pass from Jackson. I was heading for Kalispell MT so spent most of my time on the 287 and 90 in your state. Didn't get to Boise.

I used to call in at the truckstops when forced to use an "I" road because I was fascinated by the horror of it all - the sloppy looking drivers, the living in the truck lifestyle and the seeming mechanics of the industry. I came to this forum to read and get a lot of answers.

Anyway, you did your best. Something good will come of the experience.

Don't forget. If you want to come to Australia, I'll help organise a trip. It's a great place and I can say that because I emigrated here. PM me if you want a contact phone number and name for your notebook.

 

Sheriff, are you done driving? Or just done with SWIFT? Rumor has it, there's a company or two out there that treat there drivers with a little bit of respect. I don't know what companies they are, but next week ill be signing on with another company, maybe it'll be a decent one!